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A 650-year-old katana by Kanenaga — a brilliant master of the Sōden-Bizen tradition

This katana was forged by Kanenaga, a disciple of the famed Chōgi of the Osafune school in Bizen Province.

Like his master, Kanenaga worked in the dramatic Sōden-Bizen style — a fusion of traditional Bizen techniques with the powerful influence of the Sōshū tradition.

The blade has the wide shape and extended tip typical of the Nanbokuchō period (1300s).
Its vivid temper pattern features waves, clove shapes, bright activity along the edge, and flowing lines of hardened steel, creating an especially dynamic appearance.

Interestingly, the tang bears a gold-inlaid attribution added in 1686 by Honami Mitsutsune, one of the most influential sword appraisers of the Edo period.

The inscription confirms the blade as a work of Kanenaga and reflects the high regard it received centuries after it was forged.

A 700-year-old tachi linked to a samurai famed for “a thousand cuts with one hand”

This tachi was forged in the late Kamakura period (late 1200s) by Kageyori and later passed down within the Tsuchiya family, lords of Tsuchiura Domain.

The family is remembered for Tsuchiya Masatsune, who fought at the Battle of Tenmokuzan.

According to tradition, he tied himself to a vine at the edge of a cliff and continued fighting with one hand — earning the nickname “the man who cut down a thousand with one arm.”

The blade features a refined straight temper line with subtle patterns along the edge — a quiet but distinctive trait of Kageyori’s work.